The 'Mad Max: Fury Road' star was easily recognizable but also a 'really nice guy.'
Tom Hardy made a surprise appearance over the weekend at a jiu-jitsu tournament in England, where not only did he shock fellow competitors with his appearance, but he also came out on top!
The Mad Max: Fury Road star on Saturday entered the 2022 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Open Championship at Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, England, about 50 miles northwest of London. The tournament was being held by Ultimate Martial Arts Championships at a nearby school and, according to The Guardian, the 45-year-old actor subdued every one of his opponents to win the tournament.
Hardy, who reportedly wore blue gi (or uniform), was later awarded a certificate of achievement that bared his real name, Edward Hardy. According to the outlet, the spokesperson for the tournament hailed Hardy as a "really nice guy" and that he was a "real pleasure" to host.
The Guardian also reported that everyone at the tournament recognized the action star and that he appeared very "humble" and posed with attendees and participants for photos.
It's not the first time the Peaky Blinders star has entered a jiu-jitsu tournament. The blue-belt fighter entered and won the REORG Open Jiu-Jitsu Championship in Wolverhampton, England, back in August. That tournament was held to raise money for military personnel, veterans and frontline workers suffering from PTSD and depression.
His participation in the tournament is not a far departure from the role he took on for his 2011 MMA drama, Warrior. In that film, directed by Gavin O'Connor, Hardy plays a U.S. Marine who enters an MMA tournament and wins the tournament after beating his estranged brother.
For that role, Hardy told The Guardian in 2011 about the excruciating lengths he went to in preparing for the part.
"I did two hours boxing a day, two hours muay thai, two hours jiu-jitsu followed by two hours choreography and two hours of weightlifting seven days a week for three months," he said. "So come on! You have to really want to do that, so it was a challenge."
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